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Teach for America Interview Questions & Reviews in New York City, NY Area

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Updated Apr 19, 2012 – Interview questions and reviews posted anonymously by interview candidates.
Ratings are reflective of location and job title.

Difficulty Rating [?] Based on 26 ratings

3.3

“Average” Interview

Interview Experience [?] Based on 26 ratings

Positive	69%
Neutral	23%
Negative	8%

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1–10 of 26 Teach for America Interviews

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3.0

Average Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Mar 2012 in New York, NY (took 2 days)

Spoke to HR via phone interview. They asked about my background/experience to determine my suitability for the position. A few days later I did a phone interview with the hiring manager. I received an email back from HR that I did not get the position which I thought was very considerate (& unusual these days).

Interview Questions

What salary are you looking for?

Answer Question

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Mar 2012 in New York, NY (took 2 months)

The online application was extensive and took a few days to complete. It also included a letter of intent. The phone interview was pretty easy and took about a half hour.

Interview Questions

How do you stay organized.

Answer Question

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview and a 1:1 Interview.

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Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

4.0

Difficult Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Received and Accepted Offer

Interviewed Mar 2011 in New York, NY (took 3 weeks)

The hiring process went well. This organization is extremely professional. They asked me to describe challenges I've faced, times I have worked with a coworker on a project and we didn't see eye to eye

Interview Questions

Describe a challenge you've faced and how did you overcome it?

Answer Question

Other Details

I got the interview through a College or University.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

2.0

Easy Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Oct 2011 in New York, NY (took 2 months)

I researched TFA online and had a lot of support from campus recruiters. First, I had to submit an application online, which was a long questionare, and a personal statement. The first round was a 30 minute phone interview and the final round interview was a full day in person interview. Everybody that I spoke to from the company was very nice and friendly with a clear passion for the issues. There are a ton of resources on their website as well.

Interview Questions

Why did you apply to TFA?

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Other Details

The interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a Group/Panel Interview, a Presentation and a Background Check.

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Helpful Interview?

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Inappropriate?

4.0

Difficult Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Apr 2011 in New York, NY (took 6 weeks)

The hiring process is quite long, there is 5 to 6 rounds of interviews. The first few take place over the phone. As you get further along in the process, they may have another interviewer meet with you that is closer to your region/area. Then if you pass all those processes, will you possibly receive a fly out.

Interview Questions

Thinking about the corps values, how do you operate using them?

Answer Question

What has been a challenge you have encountered recently and how have you overcome

Answer Question

Other Details

The interview consisted of a Phone Interview, an IQ/Intelligence Test, a Skills Test and a Personality Test.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

2.0

Easy Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Received and Accepted Offer

Interviewed Mar 2011 in New York, NY (took 2 months)

Online application, phone interview, in person interview. Applied in late Jan/early Feb, just received my offer a couple of days ago. All parts were very fair. I was nervous for the in person interview, but the interviewers were very friendly, welcoming, and made the process much easier than I expected.

Interview Questions

Can you think of anything that might make you leave TFA earlier than your two-year commitment?

View Answers (1)

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview, a Group/Panel Interview, a Presentation and a Skills Test.

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Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Sep 2010 in New York, NY (took 4 weeks)

Upon filling out the initial application, I was invited for a phone interview. The interview began with a young man introducing himself and his current job, making it clear that he did not stay with TFA beyond his required two years teaching. I took this as a negative sign since I had designed my application around my desire to teach and close the achievement gap. If the interviewer makes it clear that teaching was never his true goal, it makes it seem as though people who do want to be teachers long term are not exactly what they are looking for. A hint for others: either lie or make it clear that TFA will be a stepping stone for you to move on to bigger and better things. That is what they want to hear.

The questions were very specific and at times, quite silly. I was questioned to the point of exhaustion about my retail experience because I assume retail is not the kind of background they are looking for. Since most corps members are fresh out of college, I can only imagine they want a lot of leadership in clubs and extracurriculars.

Keep in mind that TFA is not an organization that is looking for people who want to be teachers. They are looking for people to give this experience to for 2 years, before their alumni move on to much bigger and "better" things. If you want to be a teacher as your career, lie and tell them you want to some day go to law school. Boost any leadership you did in school, that is the selling point.

Interview Questions

What is one of your flaws?

Answer Question

How do you stay organized? Can you describe your date book?

Answer Question

When did you almost miss a deadline?

Answer Question

If you had a management position, how many people exactly were under you?

Answer Question

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview.

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Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Negative Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Jul 2010 in New York, NY (took 6 months)

The first interview was with the HR rep. That interview ended with a warning of a salary cap that I would have to agree to live with it before moving on. From there, I was brought in multiple times, speaking to people at varying levels. They were all very nice, but seemed disorganized, with a lack of communication and then a sense of urgency. The interviews themselves were pretty straightforward (Q&A, no tests), but again a bit unstructured, and they kept starting late and running long without the interviewer seeming to have gotten what they wanted out of it. They kept giving me feedback that everybody liked me, but in the end, they did not offer a job for reasons that were not very clear or consistent with what had transpired.

Interview Questions

The HR rep asked alot of the "tell me about a time that you failed to accomplish something and what you learned from it" sorts of questions.

View Answers (1)

Other Details

I got the interview through an Employee Referral and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview and a Group/Panel Interview.

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Helpful Interview?

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Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Received and Declined Offer

Interviewed Jan 2010 in New York, NY (took 4 weeks)

There was a role play involved in which I was asked to pretend I was in the position for which I was applying. It definitely was not too difficult at all, and mostly you needed common sense in order to get through it. Overall, I think that the interviewers were quite professional and made a strong effort to make me feel comfortable. Also, once I received the offer, I was called by a few people from the org to discuss the job. In sum, I had a pretty positive interview experience with Teach For America.

Interview Questions

Pretend you are [person in the job for which I was applying]. How would you react to Situation X?

Answer Question

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview and a 1:1 Interview.

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Helpful Interview?

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Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Oct 2009 in New York, NY (took a day)

I get the feeling that TFA was looking for a certain type of person rather than quality instructors who were willing to commit to students. I have two years of experience teaching university undergraduates (and have been nominated for teaching awards) yet I was not offered a position. On reflection and speaking with others, it seems like they want someone who fits a precise image rather than evaluating individuals and their potential to succeed in the classroom.

It's a wonderful program, but I hope that they expand their attributes for potential teachers.

Interview Questions

We were given a prompt about a difficult situation and asked to create a solution. However, the interviewer was hostile and immediately rejected each request without feedback.

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